I watched Tokyo! a couple days ago and figured I’d type my thoughts before they get too far away from me. The movie is actually three movies in one. Each is a bit over 30 minutes. Had any of the three been full length I’m quite certain I would have hated the result. As it is, each has some redeeming portions. Let’s look at them individually.

The first film is called “Interior Design” and is written and directed by Michel Gondry. I love the atmosphere in this one. As someone about to move from a 2,400 square foot home into a 700 square foot apartment in Tokyo with my wife and two kids, I can “feel” this movie more than many I suppose. The end is a little weird and doesn’t really make much sense to me. This movie, and the last one, seemed very Japanese to me. If I didn’t know it wasn’t a Japanese writer and director I certainly would have guessed Japanese authorship. Overall, I give it a 7 out of 10.

The second movie is by Leos Carax and is called “Merde.” The opening scene and newscaster scenes are outstanding. I laughed a lot when the old Japanese lady described the sewer monster. Beyond those scenes, however, there is nothing I find decent in this segment. I would give it a 1 or 2 out of 10, but because of those few moments that were really well done I award Merde a 5 out of 10.

The final picture was my favorite. “Shaking Tokyo” by Joon-ho Bong is excellent from start to finish. If you haven’t lived in Japan for a period of time then maybe you won’t get it, but I really felt this one. Seeing Japan’s streets totally empty and the main character’s house totally unkempt on the exterior was lots of fun too. 9.5 out of 10.

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Posted on July 3rd, 2009 under Japan • Tags: reviews, Tokyo. • RSS 2.0 feed • You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed